Homework Break

I told Justin I had a ton of homework to do this weekend, so we had to lay low. I have a literature review due in 2 weeks and haven't really started yet, so I had to spend some time this weekend working on it. Even though I've been reading on and off all day, I have yet to write anything. In fact, I still need to read through a few more articles before I commence writing.

My birthday was on Thursday the 29th of September, so last weekend we went to Dallas for my 27th birthday, the GF Expo, and the Lions vs. Cowboys football game. The weekend was awesome!

We opted to fly there because we scored a great deal on plane tickets. The only bad part was that we left Saturday morning at 6:00 am! Here's Justin on the bus to the rental car place.

We started off breakfast at the Kozy Kitchen. We arrived before they even opened, but needed a full breakfast before we hit up the Expo.

Justin ordered the "Hangover Helper" which consisted of grass fed buffalo, eggs, basil guacamole, and mushrooms. Although we weren't hungover, it was fresh, delicious, and filling. We actually could've shared this because both of our choices were huge.

Our breakfasts were filling because they were packed with fresh vegetables. I ordered the "Veggie Connection" which was an open-face omelet stacked with various in-season vegetables. Yes, I ordered eggs! I've been eating eggs a little bit more, as long as their masked with plenty of "stuff" like vegetables or meat.

Then we made our way over to the Gluten and Allergen Free Expo. We bought tickets for the vendor fair to check out different products.

I only took a few pictures...I probably could've taken one at each booth. I ate so many samples of sweets and junk food that was all GF! These chicken tenders were awesome! They are even at Disney World; I think Justin and I will need a trip to Disney World soon.

Dallas area Subway's have gluten free buns! The other day in class, it seemed everyone around me was eating Subway...how I longed for one after smelling everyone's sandwiches.

Who doesn't love Woodchuck cider? They even had a new pumpkin, which is the perfect fall drink. In fact, we picked some up after dinner last night at Central Market. I was able to enjoy one today!

Like I said, I didn't get pictures of all my favorite booths. I signed up for a two year subscription for Living Without Magazine. We also bought a cookbook that the author signed for me. I'll post more about it when we try some of the recipes. I sampled some Udi's Snickerdoodle cookies, which are even better than their chocolate chip cookies. I picked up some awesome Pamela's samples that I've never tried. I've been taking a sample of something different in my lunch everyday. I've been trying some products, I've never had before!

After we had enough of the Expo, we needed some lunch. Since I've been so deprived of Subway, I convinced Justin to go to there. Plus, we had a dollar off coupon that we wouldn't be able to use anywhere else. You can see the GF rolls are in a sealed package in the right hand corner.

 The girl changed her gloves and cut the bun with a new plastic knife. I ordered a turkey sandwich with all my favorite veggies.

We took them back to the hotel to eat. The buns were pretty good too, they were soft and had an okay consistency. It was great to have some Subway...now if only all Subways would get GF buns.

We stayed at the Hyatt Regency! 

The balance of veggies, meat, and bun was perfect together!

 I also bought some bread mixes. The brown bread mix should bake a bread that we can make Reuben  sandwiches from! I'll let you know how it goes.

After lunch that Saturday, we were exhausted! We took a nap before heading out for my birthday dinner. (I'll hopefully post tomorrow about that and the rest of our weekend.)

Common Theme

The last few weeks, have left me swamped. I'm afraid this is going to be a common theme until Thanksgiving. Busy = I have so much to talk about!

Here is a preview of my birthday weekend in Dallas! (I should be able to be more specific this weekend)

Gluten Free Expo

Hung out with Don Nelson

 Watched the Lions beat the Cowboys

My Latest Obsession

After dinner on Friday we stopped at Central Market HEB, which was down the street from Paloma Blanca. We wanted to browse their huge wine and beer selection. We also checked out their gluten free options.

I knew Udi's semi-recently came out with cookies, but this was the first time I saw them anywhere. I had to buy some, so I chose the chocolate chip ones.

I think these cookies are awesome because they are chewy! It seems like the majority of the GF cookies are hard and crunchy. These are kept in the freezer, which is nice so you can pull one out whenever you want one. They defrost pretty quickly or I put one in the microwave for a few seconds.

I think they're comparable to other cookies nutritionally too. The serving size is two cookies for 7 grams of fat and 150 calories.

My mouth waters just looking at this picture. They are rich and buttery tasting with tons of chocolate chips. I'm interested in trying their other cookie flavors.

Dinner Out

Last night, we enjoyed dinner out at Paloma Blanca. We didn't have anything planned to make for dinner, so we decided to head to out and have a relaxing dinner. We sat outside and enjoyed gorgeous weather, that for once wasn't too hot!

I ordered San Miguel Enchiladas which were mushrooms with some salsa and queso fresco. They were delicious, fresh, and made of quality ingredients. They're definitely something I've never had before, but would recommend.

Justin ordered Puntas de Puerco which was spicy, lean marinated pork. He also ordered off the celiac menu so we could try each others. His was so soft and almost melted in your mouth. It reminded me of my mom's stew but also it's own unique meal.

We were given special celiac corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas. They also gave me separate chips and salsa.

We hadn't been to Paloma Blanca in a long time. The last time we went was when Julie visited.

Gluten in the House

As you know I've been gluten free for a year now. Justin and I are still baffled as to how this happened tonight. I slowly but surely got rid of all the gluten in the house, except for an occasional cookie or ice cream cone that we clearly know is not GF, and is mostly in the house for when the niece and nephews are over.

Over the weekend we went to Whole Foods to stock up on GF items, use my LivingSocial deal, and buy some fresh produce. After watching Food Inc. on Netflix a while ago, we figured the extra money spent on hormone free chicken, where they are able to roam, was worth it. Normally we pay 2.75 a pound for chicken at the commissary. Yesterday we paid $6.49 a pound for chicken! We knew the quality of the chicken was better.

For dinner tonight, Justin was making some broiled chicken. I was helping by making some mashed sweet potatoes. Right after Justin finished marinating the chicken, I noticed a soy sauce bottle on the counter. I questioned, "Did you use this soy sauce?"

Justin: It was in the fridge.

Me: That kind has wheat!

Justin: But it was in the fridge! I thought you got rid of all the gluten, I didn't even look.

Me: I thought I did too. I know that brand has wheat, I don't know why it was still in there. Where did you even find it?

The culprit: Kikkoman Less Sodium Soy Sauce.

(As you can see, the empty bottle is now in the recycling bin.)

I double checked to be sure, yes wheat.

 Iivana, my nosey little helper found the need to sniff the gluten-filled sauce.

At least I noticed before I ate any. But it sure does look delicious. Of course, it had to be the chicken that costs more than twice the cost of what we normally pay! Justin will have to eat it for lunch & dinner tomorrow while I'm at class.

Plan B: left over nachos, which were quite tasty.

Football Saturday

Last weekend, we were at a wedding and there were these mouth watering stuffed mushrooms. I asked Justin if he was able to try one but he replied, "No, I didn't get one but like 5 people asked me if I tried one." I was raving about how delicious they were. We decided to make our own version for football Saturday. I wanted some GF onion rings to eat as an appetizer as well while we cheered on MSU. (Similar to the hors d'oeuvres we enjoyed here.)

We pretty much followed this recipe here, but also added some spinach.

First, clean the mushrooms.

Pull/twist off the stems.

Finely chop the stems.

Wash and chop spinach.

In a hot skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of fresh garlic, and diced mushroom stems.

After a few minutes, add the spinach.

Meanwhile, mix 1 package of cream cheese, parmesan cheese, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and onion powder.

Stir in cooled spinach & mushroom mixture with the cheese mixture.

Spoon into each mushroom.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

For the onion rings, we followed this recipe, but of course substituted GF products when necessary for the flour and breadcrumbs.

Cut onion and separate into rings.

Coat in GF flour.

Justin used the Cup 4 Cup GF flour from Williams Sonoma.

 Then he created an egg, flour, and milk mixture. The slices were then dipped in this new mixture.

Then you're supposed to let excess drip off on a wire rack. You wouldn't believe we don't have a wire rack so we improvised with a strainer.

After that it was time to coat in bread crumbs.

No bread crumbs for GF, so we substituted with corn flake crumbs.

Fry in oil for 2 - 3 minutes until golden brown.

 Take out and place on a paper towel covered plate and sprinkle with seasoning salt.

Ready to watch some football!

Both items were delicious and gluten free. I don't think they were the healthiest options but better than going out to eat anytime. Plus, we could enjoy the couch and my spartans. I still love sparty even if they didn't pull out a win.